Auburn Football: Gus Malzahn's Return Gives Tigers Hope

The return of former offensive coordinator, Gus Malzahn, gives the Auburn Tigers hope of being competitive as early as next season.

After some success under Gene Chizik, the wheels fell off for Auburn in 2012. The Tigers went 3-9 on the season, and most of their losses weren't even close.

Finishing last in the SEC West was not acceptable for a team just two years removed from a National Title, so changes were made.

Enter: the offensive coordinator from that very national championship team, Gus Malzahn.

Following the 2011 season, largely due to the success of his offenses at Auburn, Malzahn left for the head coaching job at Arkansas State. In his first and only year there, he led the Red Wolves to a 9-3 record and a conference championship.

With Malzahn's return to Auburn, fans will have renewed hope—much of it will come from the fact that Chizik and his staff are now out the door, but also because it is Malzahn and his national championship winning offense that returns.

By season's end, when this Auburn team had shown little signs of improvement, the only argument to be made for Chizik, if any, is that firing him could lose a top rated recruiting class. With the hiring of the well respected Malzahn, and a quick hiring at that, much of this class should be kept in tact.